How to play the ‘Splatoon 2’ Global Testfire on Nintendo Switch this weekend

If you’ve exhausted all of your gaming options on your Nintendo Switch already, I have some good news for you. Starting tomorrow, Nintendo Switch owners will be able to play a “special demo version” of Splatoon 2 for free. As Nintendo revealed last month, it will be holding a “Global Testfire” event from March 24th – March 26th to allow players to test the multiplayer mode of the upcoming sequel.

“Two years have passed in this universe since the original Splatoon, and since then, the weapons, maps and characters have evolved,” says Splatoon 2 producer Hisashi Nogami. “Through the Splatoon 2 Global Testfire event this March, players will be able to get a taste of that. There will be more new features to experience in Splatoon 2, so please look forward to more reveals in the future.”

Despite the fact that the event won’t actually kick off until Friday afternoon, the app is actually available to download from the Switch eShop right now. Once you download it, check out the schedule below:

March 24th: 12:00 PM – 12:59 PM PT

March 24th: 8:00 PM – 8:59 PM PT

March 25th: 4:00 AM – 4:59 AM PT

March 25th: 12:00 PM – 12:59 PM PT

March 25th: 8:00 PM – 8:59 PM PT

March 26th: 4:00 AM – 4:59 AM PT

That’s six one-hour blocks in which Switch owners will be able to play Splatoon 2. Typically beta tests or demos like these will simply go live on a Friday, stay live all weekend and go offline on Sunday afternoon or Sunday night. Nintendo is taking a different approach, so if you want to play, you’ll need to be vigilant.